An Ex-Spy in Congress Aims to be Virginia Governor

Former CIA ops officer Abigail Spanberger broke a 40-year Republican chokehold on a Virginia congressional seat in 2018. Now she's aiming to take Richmond.

Can a good spy become a good politician? I mean, not as an undercover agent—spy agencies are pretty good at that—but in an overt way, in, say, the messy U.S. Congress. Or, put another way, can the skills that a CIA officer employs in clandestine operations—gregariousness, empathy and, let’s face it, a learned talent for manipulating people—be put to goo…